User blog:Elgb333/FOR FREEDOM! George Washington vs Toussaint Louverture
The late 18th century saw the beginning of what would become the "Age of Revolution", a time where nationalistic ideas became widespread and oppressed people everywhere started to fight for their independence. Never has been liberty so sought after ever since the Roman era, and the Age of Revolution gave chance to small and insignificant countries to rise and become some of the most powerful superpowers of today. But today, we will be pitting two of the greatest and most iconic revolutionaires in the Age of Revolution! George Washington: founding father and future president of the United States of America! Who took on the might of the British Empire with his beloved patriots! vs Toussaint Louverture: beloved slave leader, who waged war against the tyranny of racism and oppression in Haiti using his well-trained slave army! In a battle between two national heroes... WHO...IS... DEADLIEST! George Washington George Washington was born on February 22, 1732 in Colonial Virginia. Strong, brave, eager for combat, and a natural leader, he quickly became a senior officer during the early years of the French and Indian War. Years later, Washington's experience, military bearing, and leadership skills made him an obvious choice for Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Washington forced the British out of Boston in 1776, but was defeated and nearly captured later that year when the British captured New York City. Early on Christmas morning in 1776, Washington's forces crossed the Delaware River and won two key battles at Trenton and Princeton, retaking New Jersey and restoring momentum to the Patriot cause. Negotiating with Congress, governors, and French allies, he held together a tenuous army and a fragile nation amid the threats of disintegration and invasion. Washington delivered the final blow in 1781, after a French naval victory allowed American and French forces to trap a British army at Yorktown, Virginia. With the surrender of British Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis, the British government was finally prompted to negotiate an end to the conflict. After American independence was secured by the Treaty of Paris in 1783, Washington resigned rather than seize power, and returned to his plantation at Mount Vernon, proving his opposition to dictatorship and his commitment to the emerging American political ideology of republicanism. Washington presided over the Constitutional Convention that drafted the United States Constitution in 1787, and was unanimously elected the first President of the United States by the Electoral College in 1789. Aware that everything he did set a precedent for future Presidents to follow, Washington reluctantly accepted a salary (so that the office of President would not be limited only to the wealthy), chose the title "Mr. President" over more majestic names, and retired after his second term. In December 1799, Washington fell ill after spending several hours inspecting his farms on horseback in snow and freezing rain. He would die several days later on December 14, 1799. Melee= The Bailey Silver & Ivory Hilted Cuttoe While DW gave Washington a Cloichemarde sword in their Washington vs Bonaparte episode, in this battle I'll be giving Washington his more iconic Bailey Silver sword, the one sword that was with him in some of his most iconic battles as well as his most iconic depictions and paintings. Made in Fishkill, New York by John Bailey, a cutler from Sheffield, England, the sword has a slightly curved, grooved steel blade, silver mounted cross guard and pommel, and a green ivory grip. * Curved blade * 2.6 feet blade |-|Musket= Brown Bess Musket The "Brown Bess" was the nickname of the Land Pattern Musket, the standard British Military musket from 1722 until 1838. The weapon was one of the earliest examples of a standardized design for a military firearm in history, and was used by the British Military, as well as numerous forces who opposed them, including American Militiamen. * .71 cal * 50-100 yards |-|Rifle='Kentucky Long Rifle' The Kentucky Long Rifle was one of the earliest rifled firearms in history, first coming into scene at the hands of American militiaman, who turned this everyday hunting rifle into a military sniper rifle. * .48 cal * 100-200 yards Toussaint Louverture Toussaint Louverture, nicknamed Napoléon Noir and Black Spartacus, was born in French colony of Saint Domingue, present-day Haiti as a slave. His father was the son of a defeated king of Benin who was captured and sold to white slave traders, being sent to Haiti to work on a plantation. Little is known about Toussai nt's early life, except that he was a slave until age 33, when he was freed in 1776. At some point in his life, Louverture became educated, possibly by Jesuit missionaries, being familiar with medicine and some familiarity with philosophy and political literature, as well as gaining a basic ability to write. Louverture amassed considerable wealth as a free man by 1789, when a slave revolt broke out, Louverture was initially not involved, but in 1791, he acted as a mediator between the rebels and the French leadership. Negotiations, however, broke down, though Louverture did prevent the massacre of white prisoners held by the rebels. In 1791, Louverture become committed to the abolition of slavery, and in 1792, Toissaint truly became a leader among the rebels, training his troops in both guerrilla warfare and in the "European" style of war. In 1793, Louverture fought a campaign against French forces, at this time taking on the surname Louverture. While Louverture was generally a royalist, when the French Revolutionary Government took abolished slavery in 1794, Louverture sided with the French, commanding military forces in Saint Domingue. During this time, he defeated Spanish and British incursions into Saint Domingue, as well as occasional small rebellions, and was eventually appointed territorial lieutenant governor, overseeing a period of tension between white landowners and former slaves, as well as a conflict with radical rival revolutionary Sonothonax. He later negotiated with the British in 1798, ending the conflict in exchange for guarantees that his anti-slavery revolution would not be extended to Jamaica and signed a similar treaty with the United States. In 1801, Louverture invaded and took control of Spanish Santo Domingo, in spite of being ordered not to by Napoleon Bonaparte and, in the same year, wrote a constitution offically prohibiting slavery anywhere on the island of Saint Domingue. Melee= Sabre de Cuirassier An IX The Sabre de Cuirassier An IX was a French cavalry sabre designed in year nine after the French Revolution, or 1799. The Sabre had a curved blade about 97 centimeters in length, and a was designed for slashing at a target from horseback, thought it could be used dismounted. * Curved blade * 3 feet blade |-|Musket= Charleville 1777 Musket The Charleville 1777 was an upgrade on an older line of Charleville muskets dating back to 1714. Being the standard-issue musket for the French Army in the late 18th century to early 19th century, it was also widespread in many other French territory and colony, especially in Saint-Domingue where it was used by most rebel forces. * .69 cal * Said to have a range of 100-200 yards, but its most effective range is 50-100 yards. |-|Rifle='Napoleonic Rifle' Various rifles were introduced and used much throughout the Napoleonic Wars. They were substantially more accurate at a maximum range of 200 paces because the barrel put spin on the bullet. However, it wasn't as popular yet with armies at that time due to the long reload time and the need for commanders to quickly deploy their armies on assaults. However, many commanders during the Haitian Revolution, including Toussaint Louverture, did incorporate them into their units due to the immense advantage they have on the battlefield. * Varies (but probably somehwere at .70 cal) * 200 yards X-Factors Strategy Although both generals were not perfect and did suffer their share of defeats, they are still remembered as brilliant tacticians who paved the way for their countries independence. Washington was a great general though he initially had a long string of defeats in his career. He did horribly during the French and Indian War, and while he did won battles during the American Revolution, he also lost alot of them due to lack of resources. It wasn't until the last years of the war where Washington shined the most (especially in the Siege of Yorktown). Toussaint on the other hand, took on the French, Spanish, British and even other rival commanders successfully. He did lost some battles but won most of his major campaigns (besides St. Marc). He even took on the forces of Napoleon Bonparte head on and won some of their skirmishes. Leadership Washington and Louverture drilled a bunch of rag tag peasants to take up arms and fight in disadvantage against more professional armies from very large empires. Washington took his militias and minutemen, personally trained them against the bitter cold at Valley Forge, and made a steadfast continental army. Lourverture himself made a powerful slave army from oppressed slaves that went on to defeat European armies in Saint Domingue, knowing that he himself was a slave himself. Training Even before the war, Washington was already a well-trained gentleman officer. Toussaint on the other hand was mostly self-taught since recently coming from a slave background, although he did read up on books about military tactics, strategies etc. Notes * Voting ends on April 21 * Battle will be 7 vs 7. Washington and his Continental army and Louverture and his Haitian army. * I was initially planning on giving them pistols but removed them instead after seeing that their pistols were almost identical and wouldn't make much of a difference. * Votes must have proper grammar, weapon and x-factor edges. Although debates are encouraged, flaming and any insulting language are prohibited. I decide whether a vote is acceptable or not. Battle New York Harbor, Late 18th Century It was a cold, breezy afternoon as President George Washington sits on table overlooking the bay. Watching from the horizon as he sips his tea with his left hand while the other held his sword, Washington waits for someone to arrive. He had recently organized a face to face meeting with another ruler for matters political in nature, though Washington has his troops with him just in case. The chef brought him some cakes and muffins and they refill his pot with coffee as he sits and waits. Finally, the cold winds disappeared from the bay, and a large frigate came out from the Southern border and turned right towards the harbor. As it docked, Washington saw large numbers of howling blacks running around and keeping the boat steady. Its ramp finally opens, and a black general with an entourage of soldiers went out. The black general, wearing a noble uniform with medals adorned, saw Washington and marched with his men towards his table. Washington stood up and welcomed him with open arms, though no physical contact was made between the two. “Bonjour Monsieur Louveture! I am very relieved that you have arrive here safe and sound. Welcome to the United States of America,” Washington said. “Thank you for the invitation… King Washington?” Louverture said as he finally sits down on the table and takes a plate of cake. “It’s a pleasure to be here for you have such a nice country. I hope that someday my beloved St. Domingue will also flourish like this soon as we get our freedom.” “Please,” Washington said as he hands Louverture with a cup of coffee. “Call me President.” “Ah yes. American Democracy. Pardon me for forgetting,” Louverture said. “But anyways. I got your invitation, and my reply to you? Is a powerful ‘yes’. It’ll be an honor for us to become allies as we fight for the same cause…” Louverture takes a sip of the coffee and continued, “If you want us to help each other, then I can offer you our sugar, wood and other resources. I heard that the Brits and the other Europeans are bullying you in the seas so if you want I can also open my docks as a safe refuge for them. In turn I hope you can-“ “That’s where you are wrong here darkie…” Washington said as his voice changed from friendly to hostile. “That invitation I sent to you? That wasn’t a party invitation. That was an invitation for your surrender.” Louverture leaned back in surprise, “What do you mean? What are you on to? “You see here monsieur. I think you have gone far enough with your little slave uprising. Wanton killing of French men, women and children is bound to get us all anxious, and my people from the South are crying for justice. And the French? They’re the ones who are our allies - not you. So killing them and their children has got to stop.” Washington then stood up, towering the hapless Louverture in his seat. “I sent you an invitation to ‘come in here and negotiate the destiny of our country and race’. I don’t know if you actually know how to understand what you read, darkie, but I never said anything about an alliance. I asked you here for judgement, for both my country and my race. If you would surrender now, I can assure you a fair trial fit for a former slave. If you don’t then I might have to use force.” Louverture glared at him with angry eyes before speaking in a gentle voice the word, “Never”. He then flips the table as the American and the Haitain troops aimed their weapons. US Continental Army: Haitian Slave Army: The American troops with their quick-firing brown bess fired the first volley, killing two Haitian outright and wounding several others. Some of the Haitian manage to fire some shots as they and Louverture retreat back to their boat; one of their bullets hitting an American in the throat and killing him. Both forces scrambled for cover before drawing their rifles. Washington ordered to hold their ground and try to fire as quickly as they can and overpower the Haitians. They fired their guns in quick succession at Louverture’s forces but missed most of their shots. Louverture, being the smarter of the two, divided his remaining forces: the first will try to pin down and snipe the Americans with their rifles, while the other move towards their flanks and crush them with their muskets. The Haitian rifles manage to hit some of the Americans from a farther distance with their rifles, drilling a bullet through one of them and killing him. As the Americans were still busy being pinned down by the Haitian rifles, the second group of Louverture’s forces flanked them and opened fire with their Charleville muskets, killing two outright in a barrage of bullets. Seeing his soldiers being decimated by a bunch of slaves got Washington enraged. As the Haitians reloaded their rifles and muskets, Washington drew his sword and told his men to charge straight at the Haitians from their open flanks. Washington’s sword quickly beheaded one slave soldier, while the rest of them butchered the others like cattle with their rifle butts and bullets. Louverture then orders his other riflemen to open fire at the Americans, and Washington told his men the same., Several bullseyes hit the American forces: one soldier got hit in the gut while another took one at the chest, but Washington managed to slip away back into cover. The Haitian took some casualties too, the last of them got hit right in the head with a bullet from a Kentucky long rifle. Now, only the two generals remained. Washington with fury, charged at Louverture with his saber but Louverture managed to draw his own and blocked. Toussaint then kicks Washington in the gut before sending a slash of his own. Washington managed to block it but Toussaint followed up with a left hook that sent him reeling on his knees. “Years of spoiling and fattening yourself has made you weak Washington,” Louverture said. “You should have sent one of your salves here… he would have been in better shape and would have put up a better fight.” “Shut up,” Washington calmly said while wiping the blood of his mouth. He then makes another powerful sudden stab at Louverture, and while the Haitian manage to block it, it did send him backwards from the force. Seeing his opponent stunned and slipping backwards, Washington tried to run his sword straight to Louverture’s belly. But Louverture managed to spin out of the way, and Washington’s sword unfortunately stuck the ground and got stuck. It gave Louverture a split second to slash at Washington’s back, digging in just above the spine and skinning off a huge flap of his hide. Washington yelled in pain as blood comes spurting from his wounds and he tried to walk away painfully in retreat. “You damn brute. You filthy dirty dishonorable savage… “Washington said. Louverture however, ignored him, and limped his way towards his enemy. As Washington cursed and cursed while carrying himself away from Louverture, the Haitian managed to get close to him. Washington tried in vain to slash at him with his sword to put distance between him and Louverture, but the latter just parried his attack as if he just swatted a fly. “You fight for equality but chains people you believe are lesser than you? You talk about liberty and freedom and yet you are fine for others to be oppressed? What kind of freedom is that?! Freedom for other people to leisure as others suffer for them?! Freedom for you to sell fellow men and fellow brothers as you sell pigs and horses?!" Washington tried to stab his adversary as sweat poured from his forehead and his teeth gritted in desperation, but Louverture redirected his strike to the side, before he closed in for the kill. Washington fell after Louverture gave him one final swoop with his saber, slashing vertically at Washington’s abdomen. The President went down like a sack of potatoes, bleeding and lifeless on the brick road. “Long live libertie,” Louverture said before cleaning his sword with a handkerchief. The other Americans are probably running to his location right to save their President, so Louverture used his remaining strength to dash away towards his boat and away from this country. Winner: Toussaint Louverture Expert’s Opinion While Washington is better trained and more experienced in the traditional rules of war, most experts believed that Louveture’s better guerrilla tactics would have prevailed. That, and the weapons and tactics that Louverture is carrying, sealed his victory in this battle of freedom fighters. Category:Blog posts